


Acceptance

by Piper_Halliwell1979



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Acceptance, Angst, Bottom Dean, Conforting Castiel, Dean stands up to John, Dialogue Heavy, Domestic Castiel/Dean Winchester, Domestic Dean Winchester, Established Castiel/Dean Winchester, Homophobia, Homophobic Language, Human Castiel, John Winchester's A+ Parenting, M/M, Making Love, Married Couple, Post-Season/Series 12, Post-Season/Series 13, Recovering Alcoholic Dean Winchester, Resurrected John Winchester, Supportive Sam, Top Castiel, dadstiel, hunter husbands
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-02
Updated: 2017-09-02
Packaged: 2018-12-23 02:56:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,188
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11980620
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Piper_Halliwell1979/pseuds/Piper_Halliwell1979
Summary: John Winchester has been sent back to earth to help get Mary back from the alternate universe. He finds his son married to a fallen angel and raising a teenager.





	Acceptance

Even though he was human, Castiel still had the stealth and speed of a cat. When he saw a shadowy figure lurking beside the Impala he was behind him with his gun trained before the stranger could react.

 

“Step away from the car,” Cas commanded. The figure put their hands up, keeping their back to him.

 

“See, I happen to know you aren’t the owner of this car so what’s it to you?” The male voice said. Something about it was familiar but he couldn’t place it.

 

“This car belongs to my husband.”

 

The man laughed. “Really? You’re telling me Dean sold his car?”

 

Cas’ heart raced. It couldn't be…”John? John Winchester?” He kept his gun steady as the man slowly turned around.

 

“Yeah. And just who the hell are you?”

 

“Castiel... _ Cas _ Winchester.”

 

John narrowed his eyes. “Fuckin’ angels sent me to the wrong universe. My Dean ain’t gay.”

 

Cas lowered his weapon. They were right outside the motel room. “Dean! Dean come out here!” He yelled.

 

The first thing to appear was Dean’s nickel plated gun from the doorway. “You okay, babe?” He eased out slowly. All the color drained from his face. “Dad?”

 

“I ain’t your dad. Somebody upstairs sent me down to the wrong dimension or something. Supposed to help you get your Mom back from some bizarro world. You two know anything about that here?”

 

Dean put down his gun and just stared. “Y-yes. Yes, sir. Mom went through a portal with Lucifer. Heaven sent you?”

 

“Something like that. You still got Sam?”

 

“Sam and Jack went to get some food,” Cas answered.

 

“Jack? Don’t tell me this Sam’s gay too?”

 

“Jack is my son.  _ Our _ adopted son. He may be the key to finding Mary but he has no control over his powers yet.” Cas decided he should be the one speaking since Dean appeared dumbstruck. “I believe you actually are in the correct universe. Only an archangel or god has the power to send you outside your realm.”

 

“How do you know so much about angels?”

 

Dean finally shook himself out of his trance and moved to put an arm around his husband’s waist. “Because he used to be one. He fell. For me. He’s the one who pulled me out of hell. He died trying to save us. When he came back,” Dean choked up, “he came back human and I wasn't gonna let him go again. I was so stupid for so long. We got married a couple months ago.” 

 

With tears in his eyes Dean looked to John for some kind of acceptance but he braced himself for rejection. He watched some of the steel melt in his father’s expression.

 

“I don’t know what to say here.  _ My _ Dean. The one I caught a hundred times with some girl of the week, fell in love with an angel and married him. That’s some heavy shit to wrap your head around.”

 

Dean wanted to push further but he saw his brother and teenage stepson turn the corner with bags full of dinner. Sam froze in his tracks and Jack hid behind him.

 

“Dad?”

 

John turned to his youngest son’s voice. Still wore his hair too long and still looked seven feet tall. “Sam?”

 

The big man raced to him and embraced him hard. “You’re back?” Then he stepped away. “Did you test him?” He looked to his brother and brother in law. Cas tossed him a silver flask.

 

John smirked but took what was thrust at him. The silver didn’t burn and neither did the holy water. “Happy?”

 

Cas produced a small vial from his other pocket. He dropped some of the solution on John’s wrist. “Not a Leviathan. He’s human.”

 

Sam and Dean relaxed. A quick flash of pride went over John’s eyes. The boys had their bases covered. He focused on Cas. “Mind if I borrow your old man a minute?”

 

Dean and Cas exchanged a lingering gaze. Cas gave a quick nod and Dean leaned his head against his husband’s before leaving his side. He walked with his father through the corridor between buildings and pulled up a chair by the pool.

 

“So if I’m in the right place, what the hell happened? How did your mom come back?”

 

Dean let out the breath he’d been holding. “Amara, god...well he goes by Chuck...Chuck’s sister brought her back. Kind of a thank you for brokering the peace between them. Didn’t take long for that to become a total shit show. Mom couldn't deal so she took off on her own. Hunted. Fell in with some psycho branch of the Men of Letters. By the time we got her back on our side she faced down Lucifer and kicked his ass into the portal. Got sucked in.”

 

“She took on Lucifer?”

 

“He had just killed Cas. She went beast mode. She considered him one of her boys.”

 

“She knew about you and...him?”

 

There it was. “She knew something. Never directly said anything. Me and Cas...that got the official stamp later.”

 

John leaned back in his chair and looked up to the sky. “You know, son...I’m having a hard time with that.”

 

Dean bristled. “That your son turned out to be a cocksucker? A fag? Go ahead. Get it all out.”

 

“Goddamnit, Dean. You realize what’s going through my head right now? Were you hooking to make ends meet when I was on the road?”

 

“Fuck you,” Dean snarled. “I fell in love with Cas and your mind goes straight to whore? I could have turned tricks with my pretty face but I never went down that road.”

 

“Dean, this isn’t you.”

 

“Well you never bothered to get to know me at all. You wanted a good little soldier and I gave you one. You don’t know the first goddamn thing about me. You don’t know that I  _ always _ put family ahead of the job. You don’t know that I would rather be ripped apart for thirty years in hell than let my baby brother die. You don’t know I got a big bleeding heart and I don’t see the world in the black and white you painted. One of my best friends? Vampire. Sacrificed himself so I could get Sam and Bobby out of Purgatory. Sweetest guy you’ll ever meet? Hunter turned werewolf. The king of hell laid down his life for me. So realizing the love of my life had a dick didn’t seem like too big a deal.”

 

Dean was raging. He had kept all of it repressed for years out of some false sense of honoring his father’s memory. He’d gotten the chance to tell off his mother but that was nowhere near as cathartic as going off on John.

 

“I didn’t raise you to speak to me like that.”

 

“You didn’t raise me at all. At least I had Bobby to remind me I was a kid sometimes. Tell me I was a better man than you. He accepted Cas as family with open arms and I ain’t got a doubt in my mind he would have been proud of me when I slipped that ring on Cas’ finger.”

 

“Not like it’s legal.”

 

“Oh but it is. The world changed after you died. Even met a pair of hunter husbands last year. Good guys. Retired now.”

 

“You really love this guy?”

 

“He’s my Mary.”

 

“He loves you?”

 

“Enough to give up his wings and tell heaven to fuck off. Loves Sam like his own brother. Stepped up to be a dad to Jack when his mom died. He’s half Lucifer’s. We’re the only family the kid knows.”

 

“You’re playing house with the son of the devil?”

 

Dean stood. “I’m not playing house. Don’t you get that? I’m a married man. I’m a good dad to my kids. Things that go bump in the night tell boogeyman stories about  _ me _ . This is my life and you can either get over your shit and be a part of it or you can fuck off. That's the deal.”

 

“Kids?” John raised an eyebrow.

 

“Cas used to share a body with Jimmy Novak. He had a daughter, Claire. When Jimmy died we took responsibility for her. She’s a hunter now too.”

 

“I need a drink.”

 

“I quit. Sam and Cas did too. For me. Kid comes first.” Dean walked away. 

 

***

 

After Jack had gone to sleep, Cas stayed up with his husband. Sam agreed to let John bunk with him for the night. He saw the ice in Dean’s eyes when they came back from their little chat.

 

“He upset you,” Cas started. “He doesn’t accept us.”

 

“No. He doesn’t. But I told him he could either get on board or take a walk. It made me sick, you know? He accused me of being a hooker when I was younger. Like I  _ turned _ gay or something.”

 

“Dean, I’ve never expected you to label yourself or what we have.”

 

“I know, babe. Just...I have you, this amazing guy who knows all the bad with the good and still looks at me like you do. That’s what matters to me. I mean, I know when people see us together they think gay. And I’m okay with that. I’m not okay with my dad thinking it’s some kind of insult.”

 

Cas pulled Dean up onto his chest and stroked his hair. “We can give him a little time. He needs to adjust to being in this time, just like your mother did. She saw how we are together. She would have easily accepted our marriage.”

 

Dean nuzzled into Cas’ neck and draped himself halfway over his body. “I love you.”

 

“I love you.”

 

***

 

“Dean said everybody quit drinking.” John sat at the kitchenette table with a can of diet soda.

 

Sam sat across from him, nursing a bottle of water. “Yeah. We wanted to be supportive. He doesn’t go to meetings or anything but he has a problem. I’m really proud of him. It hasn’t been easy.”

 

“How’s that work? Most of the job gets done in bars. Hustling pool without a beer? Questioning witnesses?”

 

Sam gathered his thoughts before speaking. He wanted to remain as calm as possible when dealing with his father for once. “Flash a badge and you’re on the job. Say you’re with a designated driver program and a drunk witness tells you his life story by the time you drop him off at home. And we don’t need to hustle for money.”

 

“Hit the lotto?”

 

Sam grinned. “It’s...there are these books. They are a cult hit and they are about us, me and Dean. Chuck wrote them as the Winchester Gospels. He signed over the rights to us so we get royalty checks. We even edited our journals to publish a couple more. Kind of went legit.”

 

“That’s some crazy shit, son. Guess it’s safer when you got a kid around.”

 

“Jack’s a good kid. Dean and Cas have been great with him.”

 

“He go to school? At least I kept you boys legal.”

 

“Jack is homeschooled. Between the three of us and the vast knowledge at hand at the bunker, he has a pretty good education.”

 

John nodded. He finished off what passed as a beverage these days. “This ain’t the world I died from.”

 

“No, it’s not. We’ve been building up a network of hunters. Most of the lore has gone digital so we can text files. We even have some peace treaties with some werewolf packs thanks to our buddy Garth. And some self-policing vampires.”

 

“Dean mentioned something like that. Mixing it up with the supernatural…”

 

“You mean Cas don’t you?”

 

“He’s really a good guy?”

 

“Yeah, he is. He’s my brother. He’s family. He’d still be a Winchester whether he and Dean got together or not. But for the record, there has never been someone more perfect for Dean than Cas.”

 

“How so?”

 

“For one he always calls Dean out on his shit, but he’s also the first one to have his back. They have entire conversations with just a look. When we’re fighting something they’re so in sync it’s almost beautiful to watch. I watched them fall for each other for nine years.”

 

“So they’re the real deal. No wonder Dean jumped in my shit with both boots.”

 

Sam tensed. “Did you call him something?”

 

“Not exactly. He said it, not me. Are they...open about it?”

 

“Everybody is.”

 

John huffed. “I need some shuteye. It’s gonna take some time for me, Sam.”

 

***

 

Dean kept his distance from his father for a few days. They’d already finished their case when he’d arrived. The next morning they drove back to Lebanon, Dean and Cas in front, Sam, Jack, and John in the back. Classic rock filled the void where normally conversation occurred.

 

John was amazed by the bunker. Sam filled him in about Henry and how they came to fulfill their legacy. Dean made him up a room far away from his and Cas’.

 

He was on his way to browse the library when he bumped into Cas. Literally.

 

“You uh...you got a minute? Me and you haven’t had the chance to talk yet.” John started. He’d been hanging back, observing. Watching for the things Sam said he saw.

 

“I have time, John. Please, sit.” Cas offered him a chair at one of the reading tables. He positioned himself directly across and folded his hands in front of him, left over right, to show his wedding band.

 

“You pulled Dean out of hell.”

 

“I am the who who gripped him tight and raised him from perdition. It was my mission to save the righteous man.”

 

“For the apocalypse?”

 

“Correct. But the more time I spent with Sam and Dean, the more I questioned the directive. I had doubts. I was forced to choose a side and I chose humanity.”

 

“That when you fell?”

 

Cas sighed. “Looking back, my fall began when Dean and I were in hell. But my ties with heaven were severed permanently when Lucifer killed me. I was told I could return if allowed my wings to be removed and accept a human soul. I did not hesitate. I would endure any trial, any pain, to be here with Dean.”

 

“You’d strike me dead if I hurt him, wouldn’t you?”

 

“I protect my family. Should you find your place in it I would protect you the same. But you are correct. If you become a cancer on my family I will cut you out.”

 

Cas never flinched. He barely blinked. It had taken him years to make Dean believe he was a good man, deserving to be saved. Deserving to be loved. He would not allow John Winchester to undo it. And his subtle posturing drove the point home.

 

John stroked his beard and let all that sink in. He’d felt the same way about his wife. Cas wasn’t Dean’s Mary. It was clearly the other way around. For a moment he almost allowed himself to cry. Everything Dean had looked for...love, acceptance, approval, he’d found in the fallen angel.

 

“That’s all I needed to know. Not like you need my blessing or anything.” John stood and retired to his room. 

 

***

 

That night in bed, Dean pulled his husband on top of them. Things had been tense and they hadn’t made love in days. “Need you,” Dean whispered in his ear.

 

Cas kissed him, hungrily slipping his tongue past Dean’s lips. He felt Dean’s hands roam his body, fingers digging in and nails lightly scraping his skin. He writhed beneath Cas, thrusting his hips up to meet.

 

Cas reached under the pillow for the lube so he could open Dean up for him. He was always so responsive, begging Cas to fill him up before Cas was satisfied he was ready. Still, he took his time and by the time he was fully sheathed inside Dean they were ready to make slow and passionate love.

 

Dean wrapped his legs high around Cas’ back. “Yeah, baby. Feels so good. Love it when you’re inside me.”

 

“Love seeing you like this, so beautiful. All mine.”

 

“All yours, Cas. God I love you so much.”

 

“Love you, Dean. My wonderful husband.” He kissed Dean again as he slid in and out. He smiled down at Dean. All he could see was love and pleasure in those heavy-lidded eyes. He held him close as they rocked together in their bed. 

 

Dean came untouched with a soft gasp. Cas was close behind, laying still and staying joined for awhile. Cas could feel Dean’s mood shift. He felt optimistic things would be less tense for them around the bunker.

 

***

 

He didn't mean to spy on them. John just happened upon a tender moment between his son and the angel. They were making breakfast together. He watched as they moved as fluidly as Sam described, always aware of each other’s presence. Dean was smiling in a genuine way John hadn’t witnessed in a long time.

 

Dean stood at the stove. Cas hugged him from behind and Dean leaned into it. Cas kissed his neck and Dean turned to return a quick peck. A sleepy and disheveled Jack came into the kitchen and went to his parents.

 

Cas hugged the boy to his side and gave him a slice of bacon. Dean reached over to run his fingers through the mussed hair to try to tame it. He smiled lovingly at Jack and handed him a plate with some eggs on it. 

 

It all looked so simple, so  _ normal _ , as John quietly watched from the pantry. He’d been looking for a stash of booze. He searched around for a box of Pop-tarts to explain his sudden presence.

 

“Smells good. Puts these things to shame.” He held up the box.

 

“Still some on the stove if you want,” Dean offered. John nodded and grabbed a plate. He sat across from Dean and Cas, next to Jack.

 

Jack hadn’t really been around John much so he wasn't sure exactly who he was. His parents and Uncle Sam hadn’t been that forthcoming.

 

“I don’t mean to be rude, sir. But I don’t understand who you are.”

 

John smiled. “I’m your grandpa, son. Dean's dad.”

 

Jack looked to Dean. “Is it true, Pop?”

 

“Yeah, Jack. He came back. He’s gonna help us find a way to get Grandma Mary back.” Dean answered. He looked his father in the eye.

 

“Gonna take a lot of Winchesters to pull this off,” John added. “You, your dads, me and Sam. Heard you got a big sister too.”

 

“Claire is awesome! She’s hunter, too. And Aunt Jody and Alex. Dad and Pop took me to meet them.”

 

“Sounds like you rounded up a good family, got a good home. Married life suits you.”

 

Dean allowed the tension to fall from his shoulders. He saw in his father’s face the first signs of acceptance. He shook himself out of the emotional moment when Cas placed a hand on his thigh.

  
“Alright. After breakfast and when Sam gets back from his run, we’ll get to work.”


End file.
